IKEA is synonymous with affordable furniture that reflects its utilitarian design that are sophisticated with modern clean lines. You can find IKEA furniture made of various materials.
Particleboard Furniture From IKEA
Much of the IKEA furniture is made from particleboard with a smooth, white finish. This densely compressed wood provides a lighter weight piece of furniture than solid wood. There aer two types of particle boards, one is extruded, and the other is platen pressed.
Extruded Particle Board
Particle board is a low-density fibreboard (LDF) and chipboard combination. It's made from woodchips, sawdust and wood shavings. A resin, typically synthetic is used to act as a binding agent. The wood is pressed and then extruded. It's then heated to cure the resin.
Platen Pressed
The most common type of particleboard is call platen pressed. This process uses raw wood that is milled according to the required size. The wood is blended with a mixture of wax and resin. The mixed wood is placed on mats that are then set in hot presses where the composite is made into a board. Once more the heat cures the resin.
Wood Veneers
It's easy to apply wood to the particle board for a real. Most of the particle board furniture sold by IKEA has a wood or dark finish.
Downside of Particle Board
Particle board provides affordable furniture pieces but isn't very durable. Particleboard furniture can easily split when assembling is you happen to tighten the screw too tight. It can be easily damaged in the process of moving to another home. If it's dropped during the move, it could easily break apart or suffer irreparable damage.
Solid Wood Furniture
Breaking away from particleboard furniture are a couple of furniture pieces that include tabletops, countertop, dressers, nightstands, a bedframe, and a kitchen island. According to information from the Inter IKEA team in Sweden obtained by Janice Simonsen, IKEA US Sr. PR Specialist,"Some of the most commonly used wood species are pine, birch, beech, acacia, and eucalyptus but we also use other wood species like rubberwood which is a great way of using the wood from a tree which otherwise would only have been felled and cleared after the liquid sap have been extracted." Inter IKEA also said, "Rubberwood is used for furniture like tables, chairs as well as for accessories like trays and toys."
Tarva Solid Wood
The Tarva furniture series features solid untreated and unfinished pine wood dressers and bedframes. You can paint, stain, wax, oil, or even lacquer these pieces if you choose.
Hemnes Solid Wood
The Hemnes furniture series is made of solid pine and offers a few finishes, such as black-brown, dark gray, white, white/light brown stains.
Solid Wood Tabletop, Countertop and Kitchen Island
You can often find solid wood tabletops and even countertops, such as the Gerton solid beechwood tabletop or Tornviken kitchen island made of oak.
Metal Furniture
You can also find metal furniture, such as the Idasen steel cabinet finished in an epoxy/polyester powder coating. Steel makes formidable furniture that will last. You also find metal used in combinations with plastic.
Plastic Furniture
Perhaps the least expensive furniture sold by IKEA is plastic furniture pieces. These include, chairs, tables, shelving units,
Combination of Materials
You can often find a combination of materials in the furniture pieces. Some of these include particleboard with wood veneers. Other include a combination of particleboard, plastic, metal, and glass.
Moving to More Sustainable and Environment Friendly Options
IKEA has made strides toward more sustainable furniture that is also environmentally friendly. "Another widely used material is bamboo which in reality is a fast-growing grass requiring low amounts of fertilizers and with many good material benefits as well as a beautiful wood expression," Inter IKEA said. "We use bamboo for furniture like chairs, tables, shelves as well as for accessories like chopping boards and trays."
No Harsh Chemicals
As part of their commitment to sustainable sourcing, the lacquer finishes and glues used in IKEA furniture don't contain formaldehyde. "At the end of FY19, approximately 91% of the wood used in IKEA products was from more sustainable sources," said Inter IKEA.
No PVC Products
IKEA doesn't allow PVC products in their product lines. "We design our products to make smart use of the material, using the wood in ways which both minimises waste and optimises the material to make more products from available material," said Inter IKEA.
Goals for Sustainable Products
IKEA banned the use of illegally harvested wood. The Inter IKEA explained, "At IKEA our goal is to source 100% wood from more sustainable sources, currently defined as FSC® certified and recycled wood by end of 2020." These are big steps toward offering greener products.
Discovering What IKEA Furniture Is Made Of
You can quickly discover what IKEA furniture is made of when you browse the website. The product descriptions provide you wish a wealth of information about each furniture piece.
